Metal That Would Have Even Black Panther’s Attention

This Thursday Captain America: Civil War was released in the United States. Directed by the Russo Brothers this film is truly a standard setter for how complex storylines with many characters needs to be treated. A new super hero is introduced in this film called Black Panther played by Chadwick Bosman, who is sure to make a memorable impression. In the Marvel universe the character Black Panther is the prince of an African nation called Wakanda which is famous for manufacturing the worlds most rare and exotic fictitious metal, vibranium. Black Panther’s suite is made of woven vibranuim and is technically an entire piece of functional jewelry in the movie. Black Panther was so enjoyable we wanted to celebrate the character by giving insight into real exotic metals and how they are used in jewelry today.

Platinum

Platinum is a dense, expensive, and relatively rare, silvery-white metal. Platinum is a word which comes from the Spanish word platina meaning little silver. Platinum is a more recent human discovery compared to such age-old metals as iron and copper, but it has found many important uses. It is used in catalytic converters that help to keep our emissions blunted, dental fillings, scientific equipment, and of coarse jewelry. Platinum is 30 times more rare than gold which has always given appeal to it being used as a setting in high jewelry. This stunning Hammerman necklace has graduated diamonds set in beautiful platinum giving aesthetic appeal and truly high value.

Titanium is a lustrous transition metal with a silver color, low density and high strength. It is highly resistant to corrosion in sea water, aqua regia and chlorine. The reason it is used in jewelry today, such as in watches cases or wedding bands, is for its corrosion resistance and for its high strength-to-density ratio, higher than any metal known to man. Durable yet beautiful this is an excellent metal to have incorporated into your jewelry collection. This elegant Speake Marin Velsheda shows that titanium can truly appeal to the highest standards of luxury.

Another great use of titanium in watch making, apart from it being used in case manufacturing, is its ability to reinforce other materials. A perfect example of this is the Hublot Classic Fusion product line. This product line represents a beautiful marriage between titanium and other materials such as ceramic, stainless steel, and Rhodium. The Classic Fusion Aerofusion Moonphase King Gold is truly a testament to Hublot’s ballet of material fusion. Another unique element to this watch is that the gold it uses is a specialized rose toned gold created by the company metallurgist called King Gold. This watch has a king gold case with titanium screws, and a rhodium plated dial with a HUB1131 Self-winding Movement.

Another interesting fact about Hublot metallurgy is that they manufacture a very unique type of gold called Magic Gold. This type of gold is special because it is scratch resistant due to it being a mixture of yellow gold and ceramic. Hublot has incorporated it into stunning cases for some of their timepieces such as the UNICO below.

Astronomers believe that in the early days of our Solar System, more than four billion years ago, all of the inner planets had molten cores. We also know that at least some asteroids in the Asteroid Belt between Mars and Jupiter once had molten cores, and these bodies were the parents of iron meteorites. Iron meteorite has a breathtaking structure to it, forged in space, the metal forms with unique crystal like striations. Iron meteorites usually consist of approximately 90 to 95% iron, with the remainder comprised of nickel and trace amounts of heavy metals including iridium, gallium and sometimes gold. Dating back to the Egyptian empire iron meteorite has been used to create jewelry. The only downside to iron meteorite is that is reacts chemically to water or moisture in the air which can create a rusty tinge to the metal if not handled with proper care. This Zenith Pilot Type 20 showcases the beautiful striations iron meteorite is renown for in its dial.